


The DA's To-Do List

by sirencanaries



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/F, Femslash February, Mutual Pining, Romance, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 03:37:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17779850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sirencanaries/pseuds/sirencanaries
Summary: In an attempt to boost morale within City Hall and the SCPD, the mayor decided to make everyone take place in a ‘Secret Cupid,’ working like a Secret Santa where you pull a name and have to come up with something to give that person for Valentine's Day. Laurel and Dinah happen to pull each other’s names, which wouldn’t be so hard if it weren’t for the feelings they were both hiding.





	The DA's To-Do List

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fic I've written for these two, and I've wanted to write them for a little while now, so I figured this would be a fun time to give it a go. Hopefully you enjoy!

“What do you _mean_ I have to pick a name?” Laurel asked, taking a seat in one of the chairs in Dinah's office. “You do realize we're not twelve, right?”

“It's not my decision,” Dinah sighed, showing her level of enthusiasm with an eye roll. “People have felt like morale has been a little low around here, and the kid who grabs your coffee every day suggested it.”

“Of course he did. Valentine's Day is pointless, everyone knows that. You said it wasn't your decision, so how did the little kiss ass get his suggestion approved?”

“Apparently your ass isn't the only one he kisses. He went to the mayor with the idea the last time she was in here. She thought it was cheesy, rightfully so given that.. well, given that it _is_. So she made a mandatory Valentine's Day card swap for everyone within the SCPD, and city hall. So, that includes you. I think she just said yes because she knew how adamant I was that we _don't_ do it.”

Laurel had never been a fan of Valentine's Day. Even back on her Earth, it wasn't something she ever really wanted to be apart of. Her Oliver brought her flowers a few years in a row, and it was cute, but it was also unnecessary in her eyes. After his death, however, she swore it off completely. Similarly, Dinah had sworn the day off too. There was a brief time when she had Vinny that she considered celebrating. But now? She'd rather be working.

“So who'd you pick?” Laurel asked.

“Why would I tell you that?” Dinah asked in return.

“Because I asked?”

“Laurel, the whole point of this is for it to be anonymous, a secret. Until Thursday rolls around, I'm not telling you anything.”

“Fine, don't tell me,” she replied, but she wanted to know.

“Now,” Dinah said, holding the clear glass bowl out to the blonde. “Pick a name.”

Laurel let out a huff, pushing herself forward in the chair. She locked her eyes onto that bowl, scanning over each of the folded up pieces of paper inside. Her slender fingers ghosted across the rim for a moment before dipping her hand inside, plucking out the first paper she touched. She didn't open it.

“Well?”

“But Dinah, the whole point of this is for it to be anonymous,” Laurel stated, smirking at the other woman. “Until Thursday rolls around, I'm not telling you anything.”

With that, Laurel rose from her seat and walked out of Dinah's office, closing the door behind her. As she walked down the hallway, she finally opened up the piece of paper. Stopping dead in her tracks, Laurel had to do a double take.

“You've got to be kidding me,” she muttered.

The name in the middle of the page was the one name she didn't want to have. Out of all the people in that bowl, it had to be _her_.

 _Dinah Drake_.

 

* * *

 

“Dinah told you about the Secret Cupid?”

“Secret Cupid? What the hell is that?” Laurel asked.

“You know, like how people do a Secret Santa, and people have to get a gift for the person who's name they got? Isn't this the same thing? Except it's obviously not Santa because I'm pretty sure he doesn't go around shooting people with arrows to make them fall in love,” Felicity explained.

“Mm, I'm certain he doesn't. You know, I'm surprised your husband hasn't taken that up as a hobby yet, now that the whole world knows he's the Green Arrow. I figured he'd be trying to pick up a new secret identity by now.”

“Funny. So, who'd you get?”

Laurel simply shoved the folded piece of paper across the table to Felicity, and took a sip of her wine. Felicity eagerly put her own glass down and picked the paper up, her mouth forming a perfect O shape when she read who's name was written across it.

“This is a good thing, right?” she asked Laurel.

“ _That's cute_ ,” Laurel muttered.

“I'm being serious! I think this is good.”

“I don't know _how_ you could see this as a good thing, Felicity.”

“You're.. y'know, you're into her, aren't you?”

“Keep your voice down,” Laurel hissed, eyeing the person walking by their booth.

Wine 'dates' had become a weekly thing for Laurel and Felicity. If someone had asked either of them a year ago if they had thought they'd be friends one day, they both would have laughed in their face. But now, they had somehow managed to bond after working together a little earlier in the year, and Laurel might go as far as to call Felicity her friend.

“I'm the one who killed the man she loved. She may be tolerating me, but you don't just get over something like that. So why would I waste my time telling her I'd be okay with her pinning me to her desk, when I could.. not do that, and get some cheesy card with the flying love baby on it from the store?”

Laurel wasn't going to answer Felicity's question. She wasn't going to admit that yes, she was interested in Dinah. She couldn't, she didn't know how. She and Dinah had such a rough time in the beginning, and while things were better now, she was certain that she'd be wasting her time and getting her hopes up if she were to take this opportunity to do something sweet or romantic for her.

“Come on, you can't do that,” Felicity argued. “At least make something yourself, put forth a little effort.”

“We'll see. I have time,” Laurel replied, leaning back slightly and taking another sip from her glass.

 

* * *

 

“This looks like shit,” Laurel muttered to herself, dumping a little more glitter onto the piece of paper in front of her.

She could have just picked up some flowers or a box of chocolates. She could have grabbed a crappy, cheesy card from the store. Looking at the mess in front of her, she wondered if that would be a better idea. Red glitter was everywhere on her coffee table, it was going to take her months to really clean it out of ever nook and cranny that it could be hiding in. She didn't go into this with a plan. All she did was take out that piece of paper and wing it. That's what she got for waiting until the night before to get it done.

“This day is such a waste of time,” she grumbled.

Looking at the piece of paper, she decided that she was just going to take her scissors to it. She began to cut a heart out of the page, more of the glitter falling onto the table as she did so. By the time she was satisfied with how the heart came out, it was only about the size of her hand, but that would have to do. Making the shape was the easy part. The hard part was figuring out what the hell she wanted to write.

“Do I just write something simple, like 'To Dinah, From Laurel'? Or do I have to write some lame love poem or something on it?” she wondered aloud.

Picking up her black sharpie marker, she tapped it against her chin in thought before a small smirk began to grow on her face a few minutes later. She knew what she was going to write, and hopefully Dinah would appreciate it. If not, no harm, right? They could pretend the exchange never happened and could just go about their normal lives.

Holding the finished card out in front of her, Laurel couldn't help admiring her work. It looked a bit like a child had decorated it, but she never claimed to be an artist, and at least it looked.. festive. She was planning on getting to the precinct first thing in the morning to leave it on Dinah's desk.

 

* * *

 

Dinah pondered over what to do. She didn't know who had her. She did know one thing for sure. She didn't know what she wanted to do for the person she had. It wasn't like she was hoping for Laurel, the opposite really, but she had her, and it was an odd place to be in. She didn't hate Laurel the way she used to. In fact, the other meta had grown on her tremendously the last several months. She had gotten to see a new side of Laurel that she didn't think existed.

It was not known by many that she also found herself thinking about Laurel more often than before. She wasn't thinking about her working, or the things she did in the past that were downright cruel. She found herself thinking about the way she smiled, or how determined she was to help Felicity get Oliver out of prison. She found herself thinking about the way the Black Siren suit hugged her body, and the way she and Laurel always seemed to get closer and closer to each other every time they had a disagreement; being close enough that Dinah could smell the light perfume Laurel would wear. The scent would always stick with her during the days when that happened. It was one of her favourites.

The only person who knew about this attraction she had to Laurel was Felicity. Dinah didn't love people knowing her business like that, but Felicity was too smart to fool. She was here to see all of the lingering stares, she was there to feel all of the built up emotion and tension between them. Felicity had called her on it weeks ago, and at first, Dinah had denied it. But then she realized that she was only denying it to Felicity because she wasn't ready to admit it to herself either.

Pacing back and forth in her living room, Dinah shook her head. She had no ideas. Tugging her phone out of her pocket, she plopped herself down on the couch before sending a text to Felicity.

_**Dinah:** _ _If you were me, what would you do for Laurel for this Secret Cupid thing?_

_**Felicity:** You still haven't figured it out? Dinah, it's tomorrow. Don't you think you should have done this sooner?_

_**Dinah:** You do realize I'm busy with my job, right? Look, can you give me some ideas or not? I have to get something for her, I can't be the only person who doesn't follow through on this._

_**Felicity:** I highly doubt you'll be the only one who doesn't follow through._

_**Felicity:** Have you considered just keeping it simple and telling her that you're into her? Isn't tomorrow a good opportunity to just get it out in the open?_

_**Dinah:** Sure, if I wanted to embarrass myself, I'd do that._

_**Felicity:** I'm just saying, it might not be the worst idea in the world. Otherwise, just throw some stickers onto some paper and write a generic message. _

_**Dinah:** You know, you're being a lot less helpful than I anticipated. I'll figure it out._

That's all she could do. She had to figure it out.

 

* * *

 

When Dinah arrived at work on Thursday morning, she had completely forgotten about the Valentine's Day event going on. Walking into her office, she was met with a few red roses and an extremely glitter coated, heart shaped valentine. Sitting in her chair behind the desk, Dinah picked up the paper. Just holding it upright was causing glitter to infiltrate the entirety of her work space. The glitter definitely needed to be glued a little better.

Turning it over, the card was simple. There wasn't a ton on it, but it was enough to make the brunette's jaw fall slightly. The card simply read **'The DA's To-Do List'** across the top, and Dinah wasn't sure what that had to do with anything. She immediately guessed it to be Laurel's, but what she didn't expect was the words written underneath that to-do list title. There was a an empty square box drawn on, was waiting to be checked off, with the word **'You'** written next to it.

Dinah didn't know what to say or think. It wasn't every day she got cards like that, especially not ones so bold. She didn't know if that was some cruel trick Laurel was playing, she didn't know if the blonde was trying to be funny, or if she genuinely meant it.

Laurel walked through the precinct, and Dinah could see her through the glass walls that encompassed her office space. Dinah looked at her, and for a brief moment Laurel looked up from the file in her hands and met her eyes with her own. She could have sworn she saw a smile on Laurel's face. Not a big one, but one that was soft, almost unsure. Maybe Laurel did mean it.

Looking down at her bag, Dinah opened it up and reached in. She stared at the card she had bought Laurel that morning on the way into work, and she immediately shoved it back in toward the bottom. She could do better than that.

 

* * *

 

All throughout her lunch break, Laurel wondered who had pulled her name. She hadn't seen anything for her yet, so she couldn't help thinking the person forgot. Even if the person did forget, it wasn't that important, but she felt like if she had to go through the effort of doing something for this, so did everyone else.

Laurel wandered into her office after she ate, kicking herself a little bit for not grabbing a coffee like she had meant to. Her mind was preoccupied, and it completely slipped past her to do it. She could always just send someone out to grab her one. As she approached her desk though, she realized that she wouldn't need to. There was a piping hot coffee sitting there with steam escaping through the holes in the lid, and her name scribbled on the side of the cup. Propped up against the cup was the very same card she'd made for Dinah.

 _'Figures,'_ she thought, picking the card up. Of course Dinah would just give it back. It was a risk to put it out there that she was interested in her, she didn't know why she thought maybe it would work out. At least, that was what she thought until she took a closer look at it.

The previously empty box was now filled by a thick check mark. Laurel's eyes widened a little. She was at a loss for words, opening her mouth to say something only to have silence come out. She turned it over a few times before setting it back down, picking up the coffee instead. She knew she'd have to go find Dinah a little later on to talk to her about it. But for the time being, she just appreciated the fact that Dinah had remembered her coffee order, given that she had only mentioned it to her once.

 

* * *

 

Packing up for the night, the lights in Laurel's office were off. The only light present was coming from the lamp on her desk, giving a golden glow to the entire room. She never did find Dinah to talk to her. The free moments she did have, Dinah was busy. She wasn't going to interrupt her just to talk about the fact that she gave her a card that basically said she wanted to hook up with her.

Hearing a knock, she looked up to find Dinah hovering in the doorway. It was almost as if Dinah could read her mind. Finishing up what she was doing, she sighed, shoving a hand into the pocket of her suit jacket.

“Fancy seeing you here,” Laurel said, coming around from behind the desk to move closer.

“I'm glad I managed to catch you, actually,” Dinah said, entering the office and closing the door behind her. “I have something for you,” she said, holding up a bottle of red wine.

“Were you my Secret Cupid?” Laurel asked, taking the bottle from the other woman.

Dinah nodded. “Sorry it's a little late,” she said.

Laurel set the wine on the desk and crossed her arms as she took a few steps closer to Dinah. She didn't know what she was going to say yet, but she knew she had to say something.

“Thanks for the coffee. I didn't think you would have remembered how I take it.”

“Well, I'm pretty observant,” Dinah commented. “I'm glad you liked it.”

“You checked the box,” Laurel blurted. “You checked the box and sent it back.”

“Was I not supposed to?” Dinah asked.

“No, it's not that,” Laurel began. “I just wasn't sure what to expect. I thought you might just toss it out or think I was trying to pull your leg,” she admitted.

Dinah didn't reply to that. Instead, she pulled out a small card she had made that day over the course of lunch time, and any spare moments she had. She handed the card over to Laurel, who quirked an eyebrow at it.

“Laurel, you add spice to my life,” Laurel began to read, her eyes drifting to the two hot peppers drawn under the sentence. “You and I make a good pair,” she continued, though the card had the word spelled as pear, like the fruit, with two of them drawn as well. “Happy Valentine's Day, xo, Dinah.” She paused. “You're incredibly cheesy, did you know that?” she asked.

“Read the rest of it,” Dinah encouraged.

Laurel didn't read the rest out loud, but her face softened as she leaned herself against the edge of her desk.

“Dinah Drake,” she said. “Who knew someone like you could be such a softy?”

“Shut up,” Dinah replied.

“Did you mean that?”

“Felicity told me to be honest, and as much as I hate to admit it, she's usually right about a lot of things. I wasn't going to say it, I had some stupid card from the store before, but then I saw yours and thought I should step it up,” she admitted.

“Felicity,” Laurel shook her head. “That's along the lines of what she told me to do too. I guess she was trying to play matchmaker.”

Dinah moved a few small steps closer and Laurel put her hands on her shoulders. Laurel glanced down toward the floor for a moment, before her eyes drifted back up to Dinah's.

“You may have checked that box, but I still need to cross you off the list,” Laurel pointed out.

With their eyes locked, Laurel could feel a tightness in her stomach. It was foreign to her, feeling something like this. They had been face to face at a close proximity like that before, but never in that way. Dinah felt it too, and it was something she hadn't experienced in quite some time.

“There's still a few more hours until the day is over. That'll give you plenty of time,” Dinah told her.

Almost in perfect sync with each other, both women leaned in a little closer, pressing their lips together gently. Dinah reached up, cupping Laurel's cheek. Any space between their bodies closed, with Laurel's arms going gently around Dinah's neck. As the kiss deepened a little, Dinah guided Laurel up and onto the desk. Laurel's legs wrapped around her waist, and she broke from the kiss just slightly. Her lips were still lightly ghosting over hers as she spoke.

“Happy Valentine's Day, Dinah.”

Dinah reconnected their lips, and guided Laurel to lie back on the desk, positioning herself over top of her. She began trailing her kisses down her jaw, moving toward the soft, pale skin of her neck.

“Happy Valentine's Day, Laurel.”

 


End file.
